"Whatever happened to a simple handshake for a contract", and "My word is as good as a bond"

Never thought I would see the day, nope never did. I bet if I looked out the window I would see "pigs flying" .
"The time has come," the Walrus said, "to talk of many things: Of shoes and ships and sealing wax - - of cabbages and kings."
Yes sir, the time has definitely come to begin questioning what in God's name has happened to the essence of "Truth, Justice and the American Way".
Have I been so naive for my soon to be 57 years on this earth that I believed that "doing the right thing" was the honorable way to live. That if you did your job well, really well, that the outcome would be to the benefit of mankind?
For all the times I raised an eyebrow about the complainers who said, "I was screwed by the company", to them I apologize.
For the first time in my life, I have come to realize that the "man", "the suits", the people in charge, are truly the villains in working society. And for all of these years I have been one of them.
Even one of my previous blogs, "Where did we go wrong" just written in the past month supported management's side of the issues. I blamed all of the worker bees for the problems in working society. I blamed the rank and file for the poor attitude that has evolved into making the workplace a work place and not a fun place.
What has changed me in such a short time? What has happened that has caused my thinking to reverse after such a long time of believing that people really love their job?
Well, without naming names, a close friend is undergoing contract negotiations with their employer and it has turned ugly.
This person, twice a recipient of the company's top honor, a winner of numerous awards, has dedicated their time and efforts to doing the best possible job to make the company successful and prosperous. This person who has spent endless hours trying to help fix problems that management had no idea where to begin solving them. This person is now just considered a simple cog in the big machine that only wants to squeeze every last ounce of effort out of the employees with disregard for what consequences it may have, and for less money.
My advice: Walk away. Walk away and keep your dignity.
This particular company has already faced numerous charges of impropriety in a scandal that has rocked the industry. Some of the higher ups could face indictment. And, you know what? I hope they get their asses convicted and end up as "Bubba's" love-mate in a federal prison.
I've never thought it would happen here. I always thought that if you did the right thing, and did it well, you would prosper. Not so, not true anymore.
My eyes have been opened.
To paraphrase a verse that supposedly originated during the beginning of WWII.
"They came for the......, but I didn't speak up"
Well, I'm speaking up.